Your Light, Their Hope: Support FOP Friends this Christmas

FOP is an ultra-rare genetic disorder that causes the body to grow unwanted bone. Affecting just 1 in a million people, it is the only known condition where one healthy organ system transforms into another, turning muscles, tendons, and connective tissue into bone.

This new bone forms in ribbons, and when it crosses a joint or develops within a muscle, movement is lost forever. Over time, sufferers become locked inside a painful, debilitating second skeleton.

Currently, there is no available treatment or known cure.

FOP is progressive and can strike unpredictably. A bump, fall, fatigue, virus, or stress can trigger an FOP flare-up. But it can it can also strike with no warning. The rate of progression varies dramatically; some are affected from birth, while others experience a quieter progression for longer. This unpredictability means FOP can cruelly steal a child's independence overnight.

However, there is hope!

This is an exciting time for the community, with numerous clinical trials underway globally. Researchers are racing to find a treatment. Although FOP is rare, the research has the potential to aid sufferers of more common conditions like osteoporosis, heart disease, and a rare childhood cancer.

No one should have to live with the fear, pain, isolation, and loss of independence caused by FOP. Help us support those living with this condition.

Your light today brings hope for tomorrow, for someone living with FOP.